By Kenny Chee

LET the bargain hunting begin.

Comex, the third major consumer information-technology fair of the year, opens today at Suntec Singapore with promotions aplenty.

A "30 to 40 per cent discount" will be a reasonable guide on gadget deals, depending on product range, said Mr Melvin Koh, general manager of organiser Eastern Directories.

For instance, exhibitor D-Link's new DIR-600 wireless 150 router is going for 45 per cent less at S$49.

Other steals include Samsung's 46-inch high-definition liquid-crystal display TV that Audio House is retailing, which will be S$2,500 cheaper. Its usual price is S$4,299.

Look out for bundled deals too.

At the Microsoft booth, gamers can get up to S$250 off its Xbox 360 Elite console with 120GB of storage space, by trading in old game consoles of any brand. The discount depends on the type of consoles traded in.

The Microsoft console usually goes for S$499.

Thrown in, too, are a free Gears Of War game and 20 per cent off another purchase of a Xbox 360 wireless controller.

As for Canon, it is slashing S$50 off its S$399 Ixus 95 IS digital camera. Every sale entitles the buyer to buy Canon's Selphy CP780 compact photo printer at a 28 per cent discount.

Those eyeing netbook deals can consider the S$698 Asus Eee PC 1005Ha, which comes with a free S$150 external optical drive; or the S$799 HP Mini 5101, which comes with S$299 worth of freebies.

The four-day fair, which ends on Sunday, is also the biggest in its 19-year history.

It occupies 32,050 sqm of exhibition space, compared to 30,660 sq m last year.

About 760,000 visitors are expected, up from last year's 735,000.

kennyc@sph.com.sg

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